The present invention relates to an improved gate for hog feed lots. In the improved gate, certain disadvantages of conventional gates have been obviated.
Heretofore, gates used for penning pigs and hogs have generally been made of mild steel and had two horizontal rails, one top and one bottom, and a series of vertical slats therebetween. There have also been mild steel rails having vertical end posts and horizontal intermediate slats.
Such mild steel rails have been found to be unsatisfactory due to their vulnerability to corrosion. The use in hog feed lots exposes these mild steel rails to corrosive action, not only of the weather, but also the feed and manure of the hogs.
In order to increase the lifetime of the gates, it has been proposed to make the gates out of stainless steel, which would be more corrosion-resistant than mild steel. However, in order to make hog feed lot gates out of stainless steel in the designs heretofore thought necessary, the amount of stainless steel required made their cost competitivetly prohibitive.
Accordingly, there is a need in the art for a new gate construction allowing the manufacture of gates from stainless steel, using a minimum of stainless steel, yet adequately strong for the purpose intended.